The term refers to a wide variety of sauces in Mexico.
I opted for the Mole Poblano, which is probably the best known. However, even under the name 'Poblano' there are several sauces different in colors, such as green, red and yellow. There's also an ongoing debate in Mexico over its origins. The State of Puebla claims its invention, with Oaxaca and San Pedro Atocpan, which is actually a town in the Federal District of Mexico and south of Mexico City, being the two others.
This sauce here has an abundance of ingredients but the main ingredient is chile peppers. It also features chocolate, dark Mexican beer with Negra Modelo being a good choice, and several different spices, such as cumin, cinnamon and ground cloves. I will not claim that this is the truly authentic version but it comes close, if there actually is such a thing as an authentic Mole sauce because of its many different versions throughout Mexico.
The preparation of this sauce also varies a lot, with some recipes asking to saute the spices in a pan first and other versions sauteing the peppers first. I used the latter method mainly because if you're not careful, spices can easily burn, become bitter in taste and ruin the sauce very quickly.
Let's take a look at the long list of ingredients...
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, rinsed and dried
2 Tbsp of vegetable oil
1 Poblano/Pasilla chile pepper, seeded and diced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1/2 Habanero pepper, seeded and finely diced (adds heat)
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and diced
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 white onion, peeled and diced
5 Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
1 14oz. can of fire-roasted tomatoes
2 Tbsp of low-fat peanut butter
1 Tbsp of honey
2 Tbsp of tomato paste
1/4 cup of raisins (not pictured)
3 squares of dark, unsweetened Baker's chocolate, chopped
1 cup of dark Mexican beer (any dark beer will work - I used Spaten)
1 cup of low-sodium, fat-reduced chicken stock
a handful of chopped cilantro
For the spice mix we'll need:
2 Tbsp of chili powder
2 tsp of ground cinnamon
1 tsp of ground cumin
1 tsp of garlic powder
1 tsp of sea or kosher salt
1/4 tsp of ground cloves
1/4 tsp of ground allspice
Okay, so that's it for the ingredients.
But what about the preparation? We'll start out by dicing the bell pepper, the poblano/pasilla chile, the Habanero pepper, the garlic, the green onions and the white onion. Next, combine the spices in a small bowl and chop up the chocolate and set aside.
A quick word about the Habanero. This sauce is not overly spicy with 1/2 Habanero but if you're not into spicy food, use only a 1/4 Habanero just to give it some zing. Or a good quality hot sauce such as Tapatio will work, too. Or leave it out completely,...your call. I used a whole Habanero but that's because I like spicy food.
Now we'll heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. While the oil's getting hot season the chicken breasts generously with salt and pepper and cut them in half. Place them in the skillet and brown on both sides, about 3-5 minutes each side. Take them out and set aside.
Using the same pan, reduce the heat to medium, deglaze the bottom with a splash of the dark beer and reduce. Add the veggies and saute them until they become soft and slightly browned. Stir in the spice mix. Make sure you combine the veggies and spices thoroughly. Saute for another 3 minutes, careful not to burn the spices.
Add the chopped chipotle peppers, the peanut butter, the raisins, the can of tomatoes, tomato paste, chicken broth, dark beer and the honey. Combine everything well.
Lastly, stir in the chopped cilantro.
Bring everything to a light simmer and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. While the sauce is simmering, we'll preheat the oven to 425°F. After 20 minutes pour the sauce into a blender or if you don't have one a food processor will work just fine. Add the chocolate and blend until smooth.
Switching from the pan to a enamel-coated crockpot, we'll place the chicken breasts inside and pour the blended sauce over it.
Close the lid and braise for 15 minutes at 425°F before reducing the temperature down to 350°F. After those 15 minutes, continue braising the chicken mole uncovered for 1 hour. The sauce will form a skin and the chicken might become exposed. If that happens, pull the crockpot out of the oven and spoon some sauce over the chicken. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a little more chicken stock and stir. However, the longer the chicken bakes, the more tender it obviously becomes. So when you rearrange the chicken make sure it doesn't fall apart. Tongs are a great tool for that!
The mole will also turn very dark in color which is what we're after. Scrape the sides of the crockpot to get some of the concentrated remnants and stir them back into the mole. Adds tons of flavor. After the one hour is up, take a small piece of chicken breast and check on its tenderness. It should almost fall apart but not quite, a little firm but will easily come apart when pierced with a fork.
Once the chicken reached its desired tenderness, we're done.
Serve the chicken mole with some rice, a salad and some tortillas. And if you have any leftovers, which I doubt you will have, you can make Burritos out of it. Just fill the Burrito with some shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, black beans, rice and the chicken mole. Makes a great lunch!
And there you have it....Pollo con Mole Picante!
Buen provecho!
No comments:
Post a Comment